Fitchburg firefighters round up swans ahead of 'fowl' weather

FITCHBURG -- Just when everyone thought the Coggshall Park swans' goose was cooked, they're relaxing comfortably at their winter home thanks to city firefighters.

The swans at Coggshall Park will be spending the rest of the season at a farm on Marshall Road, according to Department of Public Works Commissioner Lenny Laakso.

The stubborn water fowl had completely ignored more than a month of attempts by DPW workers to capture them with baited cage traps before the pond completely freezes over, leaving city firefighters to have to physically remove them on Friday afternoon.

Many residents and visitors to Coggshall Park, concerned about the swans still being kept outside there in the cold, winter weather, contacted both city departments and the Sentinel & Enterprise to find out why they hadn't been moved earlier.

"We've had some frantic calls from people worried about the poor swans freezing to death, but really, they're fine with this weather," Laakso said Friday morning.

In some cities and towns, swans will stay out all year long, he said, but it has been a longstanding tradition in Fitchburg to house them at Marshall Farm during the colder months.

Some years, it can be quite a challenge to move the swans, Laakso said. Last year, it was easy, but the year before, "it was a real battle," he said, and the DPW had to call the Fire Department for assistance then as well.

The reason for moving them, however, has less to do with their ability to handle winter weather and more to do with their changing habitat during this time.

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When the pond freezes, Laakso said, the swans are less able to escape predators, such as coyotes, who would find them to be a tasty meal.